


Here We Go Again, We Know the Start, We Know the End

by eyeslikeonyx



Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mamma Mia! Fusion, F/M, Getting Back Together, Implied Mpreg, Kid Fic, M/M, Past Relationship(s), Post-Break Up, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-15
Updated: 2019-06-15
Packaged: 2020-05-01 21:04:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 15,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19185493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eyeslikeonyx/pseuds/eyeslikeonyx
Summary: Sid knows that the only reason he started going gray before his thirties is because of Sophia. That kid is both the light of his life and the bane of his existence. He thought her being an adult now would help slow down the process, but no. If anything, his hair is going to be solid white before this weekend is over. He’ll probably get a few more wrinkles around his face while he’s at it.





	1. Sophia

**Author's Note:**

  * For [eafay70](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eafay70/gifts).



> A massive thank you to my cheerleaders for helping me and beta-ing for me. I really couldn't have done it without y'all.
> 
> To my recipient: I really hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it!
> 
> DISCLAIMER: all the adults have been aged up so that the story takes place in 2019. So Sid was NOT born in 1987 here in this story, and Geno was NOT born in 1986. Just so everyone knows in case people start wondering why Sid was having a baby at 12/13 years old. Hope that clears things up!

Sophia stares at the three envelopes in her hands in the dead of night, three different addresses written down to be sent to three different people. Three people she has never met, only heard of in passing as she was growing up. Her hands tremble, but her smile is too wide and too bright to be interpreted as anything other than pure joy.

She drops the envelopes into the mailbox before she can change her mind.

Sophia’s quiet laugh is drowned out by the winds coming off of the island shore, and her long, curly black hair flies around her. She looks out at the span of the Sea of Crete, illuminated by the pale light of the moon and stars, and wonders.

What if this turns out to be a mistake? Her dad is going to _kill_ her when he finds out what she’s done. Her uncles very well may kill her, too, but she feels in her heart that she has done the right thing. She deserves answers to so many of the questions she has been asking since she can remember. Every time she asks, her dad refuses to give her real answers that mean something. It’s been nothing but empty promises of _explaining it later_ and it _not being the right time._

There’s no turning back now, and she is going to have to face the consequences of the choice she has just made. She just hopes she doesn’t live to regret it.

 

Weeks pass, and Sophia still hasn’t received an RSVP to her wedding from her three strangers. Her wedding is tomorrow, but there’s still time. She shouldn’t be upset about them not coming, though; she had a feeling they wouldn’t be able to make the trip. The airfare to Greece is expensive, and Kalokairi is pretty hard to reach except by boat from the mainland. She still hopes they can maybe make it, but she won’t be too upset if they don’t.

Besides, she has better things to worry about.

“Sophia!”

Sophia screams happily as she runs to the dock where the ferry has dropped off her two bridesmaids. Raina and Mary catch her when she jumps into their arms. They chatter quickly about how much they’ve all missed each other since Sophia came back home after her first year at Boston College.

“This is even more gorgeous in person,” Raina sighs as she looks out at the crystal blue water surrounding the island.

“I’m glad we met you in Boston and all, but how can you leave this place behind?” Mary scoffs in disbelief. “I would never leave this place for any reason.”

“My dad has been on my case about going to college for as long as I can remember,” Sophia tells them. She glances at the gorgeous engagement ring sitting on her left ring finger and smiles wistfully. “Besides, if it hadn’t been for him pushing me so hard, I wouldn’t have met Noah.”

“I still can’t believe you two are getting married,” Mary mumbles as the three young women grab their bags and make their way up the stone steps to the hotel. “And so quickly, too.”

“At least his parents seem to like you,” Raina chimes in, swinging her long, black hair to get it out of her face. “Everyone back in Boston thinks you’re pregnant.”

“Definitely not pregnant,” Sophia laughs when they reach the flat common area. “But I do have a secret.”

Raina and Mary stop in their tracks, and Sophia grins when she turns to look at them.

“What is it?” Mary asks. Sophia bounces on the balls of her feet.

“I invited my dad to my wedding.”

“You found him?” Raina exclaims. “Soph, that’s great!”

“I didn’t exactly find him. That’s the other half of the secret. I can’t tell you out here, though. We need to get to the room first.”

“But—”

“Just trust me. Dad can’t hear what I’m about to tell you.”

The moment they make it into Sophia’s room, Sophia is pulling a leather bound journal out from under her mattress. She takes a deep breath and holds the journal against her chest.

“Promise neither of you will repeat what I’m about to tell you?” she asks, her tone deadly serious. Raina and Mary nod from where they’re sitting on the edge of the second bed. Mary sees the book first and rolls her eyes.

“Please don’t tell me this is you trying to convince us that you should be BC’s head hockey coach next season.”

“No, but you know I should.”

“So that’s not a playbook for the team?”

“No, it’s not. I already have one made and ready to go for next season, anyway. But that’s not what my big secret is.” Sophia holds out the book. “This right here is a journal. But not just any journal.” She takes a deep breath. “This is the journal my dad kept when he was pregnant with me.”

Raina and Mary start trying to ask a million questions about the journal until Sophia shushes them.

“Keep your voices down!” she whisper-yells. “He doesn’t know I have it.”

“How did you even get it?” Raina asks.

“I found it when I was trying to look for baby pictures of me and him. I thought it was just some harmless stories about him traveling abroad for college until I got to the part where Dad started talking about this guy named Geno. And then I looked at the date, and it lines up with around the time I was conceived!”

“So, you think this Geno guy is your other dad?”

“Maybe. But there’s more to the story. I’m gonna have to start from the beginning.”

Sophia opens the book and flips the pages until she lands on the page with the date _19 June 1999._ She takes a deep breath like she did when she read the entry the first time.

 _“The people on this island swear it’s the Island of Love and was one of Aphrodite’s favorite places to hang around,”_ she recites from the journal. _“I don’t know if that’s entirely true, but it seems like everyone is hooking up with everyone nowadays. All the girls on this trip keep trying to go after Geno, and I can understand why. He’s tall and cute and apparently really rich. He’s a hockey player, too, but none of them actually care about that._

_“Geno’s really nice. We talk hockey shop talk a lot—”_

“Now we know where you get it from,” Mary quips.

_“—and he’s funny. I really like him, but I don’t know if he likes me too much. Maybe everyone’s right and he’s immune to Aphrodite’s powers. It’s ok, though. I need to focus on my class.”_

“Please tell me there’s more,” Raina begs.

“So much more than I was prepared for,” Sophia confesses. She clears her throat and turns a couple pages. _“21 June 1999. Geno took me to dinner on the mainland like he promised. Jack is the best roommate for covering for me. We were only supposed to be out for like three hours tops, but it’s currently 4 AM, and I’m still thinking about his hands on me from when we were in the hammock.”_

Raina and Mary squeal when they hear that part.

“So your dad and Geno banged in a hammock?” Mary shrieks. “That’s amazing!”

Sophia’s cheeks turn bright red, remembering some of the _other_ details her dad posted about his whirlwind romance with the mysterious Geno. She quickly turns a few pages until she lands on the next entry.

“But here’s the sad part,” she says. Raina and Mary calm down immediately and lean in to listen. _“6 July 1999. Geno’s having to leave today. He says he has to go away to start training camp for his team. He promises he’s going to come back for me, but he won’t. I know he won’t. Hockey is his top priority. And I can’t be with him because I’m a guy. Pro athletes aren’t gay… or at least not openly gay. He’s too far into the closet to ever come out, and I don’t want to be a dirty little secret. So I told him to just never call me or talk to me again. It hurt having to say that, but it had to be done.”_

“Poor Sid,” Raina sighs sadly.

“So Geno is your dad?” Mary asks. Sophia smirks.

“Maybe,” she replies, “but I’m not sure.”

“What do you mean you’re not sure? It says it right there in his journal!”

Sophia flips to the next selected entry.

 _“11 July 1999. It’s official. Wine is_ _not_ _my friend. I can’t believe I was so irresponsible. Jack was just trying to be a good friend by buying me some wine and drinking with me while I was crying over Geno leaving. Jack promised that it was a one-time thing, and we could forget about it. But I feel awful. He’s become one of my closest friends on this trip. Not that it matters because he’s going back to Indiana in a couple of days. And then he’s off to UCLA. He promises to call and write, but we’ll see if that actually happens.”_

“Wait,” Raina interrupts. “So your dad slept with this Jack guy too?” Sophia stays silent and bites her lip. “Holy shit! Your dad was gettin’ it!”

“He needs to teach me his ways,” Mary says wistfully. “I can barely get a guy to say hi to me, and here’s your dad having sex with two different guys in a _week!”_

“You are _not_ asking my dad anything about this,” Sophia threatens. “This conversation can never leave the three of us.”

“So let me get this straight,” Raina jumps in. “You have not one but _two_ potential dads?”

“The story isn’t done,” Sofia informs them with a smirk. Mary blinks.

“Please don’t tell me there’s another guy,” she begs. “I don’t think my heart can take it.”

“Then you might wanna cover your ears.”

Raina groans and drags her hands down her face.

“Oh God, Soph.”

_“16 July 1999—”_

“Hey, Soph!”

Sophia jumps and scrambles to hide the journal under her pillow. Raina jumps forward and lands right on top of the pillow hiding the journal. Mary quickly faceplants into Sophia’s thigh before rearranging herself to make herself look more lax.

“Come in!” Sophia calls out, heart pounding hard in her chest. Sidney opens the bedroom door with a bright smile on his face, the smile lines more prominent in the sunlight shining through the window.

“I thought I heard a couple screaming voices up here,” Sidney teases when he sees Raina and Mary. “You guys having fun already?”

“Loads of fun,” Mary tells him. Sid laughs and then sighs wistfully.

“I used to have fun, too, when I was your all’s age.”

“Oh we know,” Raina whispers. Sophia and Mary smack her thigh simultaneously. Sid stares at them for only a fleeting moment before smiling again.

“Did your flight go ok?”

“Went great!” Mary exclaims. “Good to see you again, Mr. Crosby!”

“I told you guys to call me Sid. Mr. Crosby reminds me of my father.”

“I thought you were heading into town to pick up Uncle Kris and Uncle Flower?” Sophia asks.

“I’m heading that way now,” Sid replies. “You girls need me to pick up anything from the market while I’m down there?”

“Not that we can think of. But you might need to get some new pants while you’re in town. Those are falling apart.”

She points to Sid’s tattered, acid-washed jeans that are definitely a size too big and being held up by an equally old belt. Sid rolls his eyes.

“You say that every time I wear these.”

“Because it’s true! Get some clothes that fit you for once.”

“No time. Someone has to keep this place up and running.”

“That’s what Noah and I are going to be here for.”

Sid’s easy grin falters a little like it always does when Sophia mentions that she and her husband to be are staying on Kalokairi for the time being. She knows that her dad wants her to go back to Boston to further her education, but she can do all of that from her computer at home—on Kalokairi. Noah loves the island and the hotel, and he wants to help Sid renovate it. He’s a hardworking guy who’s going to be graduating in the fall, so he’ll be back in Kalokairi to start renovations in no time. He and Sid get along well, too, so that helps.

But still. Her father has always wished for her to get off the island. Start a new adventure. Do things differently than he did.

“Soph—”

“Nope. No more discussing this. Go get Uncle Kris and Uncle Flower before they start harassing the ferryboat driver again like last time.”

Sid sighs, clearly ready to drop the conversation as well, before grinning again. Sophia has always envied how well her dad can hide his emotions at the drop of a hat.

“You girls have fun around the island,” he says. “Soph, if you need anything, call me.”

“You actually have your phone this time?”

Sid rolls his eyes and pulls his old flip phone out of his pocket to show to Sophia. Sophia nods once in approval before sending her dad on his way and closing the door behind him. Sophia waits another few moments before silently gesturing for Raina to get the journal back out. As soon as Sophia has it in her hands again, she opens up to where she left off.

 _“3 July 1999,”_ she starts up again. _“There’s this guy named Shea who landed on the island yesterday, and he’s so funny and he’s_ _really_ _hot. He’s a sailor traveling the world on this sailboat he calls the_ Poseidon, _and he writes about everywhere he’s been before sending off articles to all these different magazines. He’s Canadian, too, and we both like the Habs. We’ve really clicked, and I really like him. He took me for a ride on his boat to another island not far from Kalokairi, and—_ dot, dot, dot. _Well, you can probably guess what happened next.”_

The two other girls shriek in delight.

“Your dad really knew how to get laid, Soph,” Mary breathes. Sophia rolls her eyes.

“Yeah, but he’s so _awkward,”_ she tells them. “I don’t know how he did it.”

“So which one is your other dad?” Raina asks. “Geno, Jack, or Shea?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then which one did you invite?” Mary demands.

Sophia doesn’t reply. Her silence is enough of an answer.

“Oh my god.”

“Your dad is going to kill you when he finds out.”

“Have you told Noah?”

“Jesus Christ, Soph, _all three_ are coming to your wedding?”

“I don’t know if any of them are coming,” Sophia says amidst her friends’ lightning fast questions. “They haven’t RSVP’d nor have they sent back anything saying they aren’t coming. Nothing. Just radio silence.”

“If they show up, where are they going to stay?” Raina questions. “If your dad sees them, it might not be pretty.”

“Relax, I cleaned up the second floor of the goat house so that they don’t have to stay in the hotel. Made an excuse to Dad and the others saying that we were doing this for overflow. I already planned this out.”

“Let’s hope your plan doesn’t backfire.”

“It won’t. Dad won’t know a thing. Besides, as soon as I see him, I’m going to know which one is my other father. I just know it.”

 

The last ferry boat to the island until Monday came by over an hour ago, and none of Sophia’s potential fathers have arrived. She tries not to be too upset because at least Uncle Flower and Uncle Kris are finally here. She hasn’t seen them since she was thirteen and rocking pink braces and hair wraps, and she’s missed them so much.

“Jesus, kid, stop growing up,” Kris says when he sees Sophia in the circular commons area in the center of the hotel.

“Uncle Kris!” Sophia shouts as she hugs Kris as tightly as she can. Kris squeezes her waist and laughs.

“It’s good to see you again, Little Aphrodite.” Sophia giggles and lets go of Kris to launch herself at Flower.

“You’re so big, _mon cheri,”_ he chuckles. “You’ve grown up into such a fine young woman.”

“She looks like your twin, Sid,” Kris comments as Sophia helps her honorary uncles with their bags. “I mean, seriously. You two could pass off as siblings instead of father and daughter.”

“Not with those gray hairs, he can’t,” Flower chirps. Sophia laughs when she sees her dad stick his foot out and push at the back of Flower’s knee. _“Tabarnak,_ Sid! That’s not funny!”

“Sophia’s laughing, so obviously it was funny.”

Flower and Sid bicker back and forth while Sophia and Kris hang behind.

“How are you feeling, kid?” Kris asks her quietly. Sophia sighs.

“I’m feeling good, actually.” She really is. She’s going to marry the man of her dreams tomorrow, and she’s going to enjoy this new chapter of her life surrounded by the people that matter most—the ones she actually knows and who have been by her side through various stages of her life.

Kris grins and hugs her shoulders.

“I’m glad.”

Sophia saunters around the hotel, helping set up decorations here and there for the rehearsal dinner party that evening while Raina and Mary are getting their dresses hemmed. She’s so focused on getting the fairy lights hung up that she jumps when she feels a pair of strong hands on her waist and holding her steady.

“You good up there, baby?”

Sophia smiles to the sky and cranes her neck to look at Noah standing behind her. He’s still handsome as ever with his gorgeous blue eyes and killer smile, and he finally let his hair grow out. She lets her fiance help her down and sighs against lips as he kisses her.

“Good morning, future Mrs. Hanifin,” Noah murmurs. Sophia laughs.

“One more day,” she promises, “and I’m yours forever.”

“And I’m _yours_ forever, too.”

Just thinking about marrying Noah gives Sophia butterflies. She loves him so much, and she can’t wait to start this new chapter of her life with him. Things have been moving pretty fast between them, but she knows he’s the one for her.

“I wish I could hug you all the time,” Noah sighs into Sophia’s braided hair.

“Dad making you do all the heavy lifting around here?”

“I wish,” Noah scoffs. He pulls back so he can look down at his fiance. “He won’t let me do anything to help except to spot him and make sure he doesn’t drop anything. Your uncles said something about distracting him, though, so that he doesn’t blow his back out.”

“Good,” Sophia laughs. She gives him another tight hug and a kiss on his lips before letting go. “I’m gonna go into town to get the flowers. I would ask you to come with me, but I don’t think you can handle the job.” Noah laughs and rolls his eyes fondly. He kisses Sophia’s head.

“Be careful, ok?”

“Always, babe.”

With one last kiss goodbye, Sophia and Noah part ways. She goes down the stony steps to the rusty pickup truck at the entrance to the hotel. She doesn’t know how the old thing is still running. It’s so old that she’s pretty sure it’s going to outlive her. It takes a minute for it to start up, but as soon as it does, Sophia is tearing off down the gravel road to the main dock at the end of the island.

She blasts her Nirvana CD through the old speakers and sings as loudly as she can. The vacationers stare at her as she speeds past, but the locals don’t seem to mind. They know her well enough by now to just leave her be. It’s one of the many things she loves about Kalokairi. It’s a beautiful place with many good people that have known her since she was just a baby. It’s why she doesn’t really want to leave.

She wishes her father could understand that sometimes, but there’s nothing she can do to try to get him to see what she sees.

She parks in front of the little flower shop and makes small talk with the florist, a little old lady that goes by Ms. Athena, as they load the flowers into the truck bed. She’s about to start up her truck again when she notices what looks like a large sailboat coming close to the docks.

“Do you know who that might be, Ms. Athena?” Sophia asks. Ms. Athena squints her eyes in the direction of the ship and stares for a moment before shaking her head.

“Must be late squabblers,” she grumbles before going back into the shop. It’s not even eleven o’clock in the morning yet, but the locals hate it when people come in after the ferry boats have stopped. Sophia just shrugs and gets back in the truck. She’s about to start the engine up again, but she decides to take another peek at the sailboat that is now docking at a free spot on the long pier. She knows she should be getting back to the hotel before her dad starts to look for her, but morbid curiosity rules out her safe rationale.

Sophia steps out of the truck once more and walks down the dock. It’s not a boat she’s ever seen before, but it’s beautiful and _huge._ Big enough for someone to live on. It’s made out of polished wood and metal masts, and it has a Canadian flag hanging at the top of one of the masts.

Wait a minute.

Sophia looks down at where the name of the boat would normally be and sees it’s named the _Poseidon II._

“Can I help you, young lady?”

Sophia jumps and looks up at the nose of the boat to see a tall, handsome man with shoulder length hair and a five o’clock shadow looking down at her with a raised eyebrow. Sophia’s stomach excitedly twists itself into knots.

“I was just admiring your boat,” she replies. “It’s really beautiful.”

The man grins. His smile is damn near perfect, and Sophia feels like she’s reliving someone else’s past.

“Thank you. I built it myself.” Sophia remembers reading an entry from her dad’s journal about how Shea liked to build and sculpt things when he could. All the pieces are starting to fall into place, and her heart is racing. “You vacationing here?”

“No, sir. I live here.”

“So you know about some wedding that’s happening on this island?” a different voice asks. Sophia looks and sees a tall, muscular man with cropped blond hair and green eyes, wearing a white button-up shirt and slacks. He’s handsome but not as handsome as the scraggly traveler beside him. Sophia clears her throat.

“Yes.”

“So you know the bride, I’m assuming?”

“I do, actually.”

A third man emerges from the cabin of the boat, and Sophia’s jaw drops. She knows that guy. She’s heard his name on her radio growing up when she could only listen to hockey games. She saw him play in person once when he and the rest of the Pittsburgh Penguins came to play against the Bruins. He’s Noah’s favorite player, even though he’s not a Bruin.

“Holy shit, you’re Evgeni Malkin.”

The man takes off his sunglasses, and Sophia’s suspicions are confirmed. Malkin is even more handsome in person, and his smile is so much nicer than she had imagined. The dentists in North America are geniuses at their jobs.

“You hockey fan?” Malkin asks.

“Hell yes!” she exclaims after a moment’s hesitation. “My fiancé and I are big hockey fans. My dad used to be, too, but he doesn’t really watch much hockey anymore.”

Malkin grins.

“Think I’m not have someone recognize me here,” he says but it’s not unkind. “Can call me Geno.”

Sophia’s brain metaphorically screeches to a halt.

“I’m so rude, sorry,” the shaggy-haired man says. “I’m Shea. Shea Weber.”

Sophia can’t believe it.

“Jack Johnson,” the blond introduces himself with a crooked smile.

_Oh fuck._

Sophia flicks her gaze between all three of them. She can’t believe that they’re all really here. They’re not just names in a journal. She’s too shocked to do anything except gawk at all three men standing above her on the platform of the sailboat.

“What you say your name is again?” Geno asks. Sophia snaps out of her little daze and clears her throat.

“I’m Sophia,” she replies. “Do you guys want me to give you a ride to the hotel? I came in my truck, and I figured you guys didn’t want to walk all the way there.”

“You sure you have room for us?” Geno asks.

“Yeah, for sure! I just came into town to pick up flowers. There’s plenty of room in the truck bed.”

Shea shrugs and turns to Sophia.

“Lead the way.”

 

On the drive up, the three men ask Sophia questions about the island and how much it’s changed since they’ve been there. Sophia happily talks about the old lady that runs the flower shop and how more tourists are starting to come to the island for vacations and stuff. She talks about the growing night life and all the adventures the locals offer to the tourists during the day.

“It’s grown so much,” she tells them, “and that really helps my dad out a lot. He owns the only hotel here on the island.”

“Oh yeah, the _Villa Donna,_ right?” Jack asks. Sophia laughs.

“It’s the _Villa Sophia_ now,” she explains. “The old lady who used to own the place named it after me before she passed away.”

“Mama Cassandra passed away? When?”

“When I was six or so. She was like a grandmother to me. She’d be proud with how things have grown here.”

“Guess I should’ve known a lot would change,” Jack says while looking out at the trees passing by. “I mean, it’s been what? Twenty years since I’ve been here?”

“Summer of ‘99,” Shea sighs from the truck bed, Geno sitting beside him as they hold onto the flower pots. “That was a fun summer.”

 _Bet it was,_ Sophia thinks to herself.

“Yes,” Geno murmurs wistfully as he looks out at the Sea of Crete to his right. “Always fun here in summer.”

Sophia can see the far away look in his hangdog brown eyes from the side mirror, but she doesn’t comment on it.

When they get to the hotel, Sophia drives around the back to the goat house before any of the men can ask any questions. They don’t seem to mind, though—especially not Geno—when they see the goat house.

“Hope you guys don’t mind,” Sophia says apologetically. “We ran out of room in the main part of the hotel, so this is the only space we had left. We’re working on expanding the hotel, but that’s gonna take a little while. Is this okay?”

“All I need is a mattress, and I’m sold,” Shea replies.

“I normally don’t really care as long as I can get some sleep,” Jack promises. “I can fall asleep anywhere.”

Geno smirks as he gives the goat house a once-over.

“I remember this goat house,” he mumbles to himself. Sophia sees Jack discreetly glaring at Geno when he says that and realizes that’s probably something that shouldn’t be brought up. She has to mentally shake away the journal entry about her dad and Geno spending a whole rainy day in the goat house. She doesn’t need nor want to try and think about that right now.

“Is it going to be ok for the next couple of days?” she manages to ask. Geno grins at her.

“Is fine with me.”

“Great!” she exclaims.

“Soph?”

Sophia freezes when she hears her father’s voice some distance away from the goat house. He’s figured out she’s been gone a while. She should have been keeping track of the time. That man has some kind of sixth sense when it comes to figuring out where she is, regardless if she’s down the street or in another country. She watches all three men whip their heads in the direction of Sid’s voice, and Sophia swears.

“We need to go inside,” she says as she frantically shoves them all into the goat house. They’re all three asking why they need to go inside, but they do as they’re told. Sophia closes the door behind her and locks it, breathing a sigh of relief.

“I know that guy out there,” Shea says.

“So do I,” Jack adds.

Geno narrows his eyes at Sophia.

“What you say your last name is?” he interrogates. Sophia pales. She was hoping she would get them settled in the goat house before she answered any questions about her dad, but it looks like that’s going to happen sooner rather than later. She tucks a stray curl behind her ear.

“Crosby,” she tells them. Shea blinks.

“Crosby?” Jack asks. “You’re Sid’s daughter?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I am.”

Jack’s eyes widen. Shea and Geno stare at Sophia, unable to process the information.

“I knew you looked familiar,” Shea finally says. “Those eyes are unmistakable.”

“Sophia?” Jack asks. She can hear his voice rising into a slight panic. “Does your father even _know_ that we’re here right now? Does he have any clue that we’ve been invited to your wedding?”

Sophia bites her lip and tilts her head from side to side.

“About that—”

Geno swears and none of it is in English. He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose.

“Should have known,” he laughs bitterly.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you guys the truth in the first place,” she frantically explains. “I didn’t know how you would react if I told you guys that I was Sid’s daughter.”

“You know what your father say to me when I leave Kalokairi? He say he never want to see me again. He tell me never to come back.”

“But you did. You’re here, aren’t you?”

“Not point.”

“Then what is the point?”

“The point, Sophia,” Shea chimes in, “is that Sid hasn’t seen any of us in at least twenty years. Now he’s going to see all of us here? Together? On _his_ island? At the same time? That’s a recipe for disaster, kid.”

“I know it seems bad, but I promise it’s going to work out. He’s going to be happy you guys are here.”

Jack looks a little dubious at that statement.

“Ok, maybe he won’t be _happy_ to see you guys. But he’ll definitely give you guys a reaction worth remembering.”

She laughs nervously as she watches all three men exchange unsure looks with each other. Her laughter fades until she’s frowning.

“Maybe is best I don’t come to your wedding,” Geno finally tells her. Sophia’s heart sinks.

“What?” she breathes. “But—but I want you there. I want you all there.”

“Why do you care so much if we’re there?” Jack retorts. “We’re total strangers. You just met us all today.”

Sophia knows Jack is right, but it feels like she’s known them for years. She feels a connection to all of them. One of them is her biological father, and they all seemed to have genuinely cared about her dad at one time or another.

“Please just—just come,” she begs. “I promise to keep my dad away from you guys if that’s what you want. You guys have come a long way for a wedding. You might as well stay and enjoy yourselves while you’re here. There’ll be free alcohol and lots of fun music. I promise my dad didn’t pick out any of the music.”

Shea huffs out a laugh.

“You really know how to persuade people, kid,” he says. “I can never turn down free booze. And I can’t say no to that face.”

Jack makes a resigned face.

“I guess I’ll go, too,” he sighs. Sophia turns to Geno.

“Promise you’ll be there?” she asks hopefully. Geno takes a long breath.

“I promise.”

Sophia hugs each of them one by one. She’s about to say something else when she hears a knock on the door of the goat house.

“Sophia?” Sid calls out. “You in here?”

The three men look longingly at the door, and Sophia has to hold her arms out to make them surrender.

“Promise me that if any of you end up talking to him,” she whispers, “you won’t tell him that I invited you?”

They all nod and Sophia takes a shaky breath before finally slipping through the front door of the goat house. Just like she had predicted, Sid is standing right there with a very confused look on his face.

“What were you doing in the goat house?” he demands. Sophia tries to think of a good enough lie until she lands on the flowers still sitting in the truck bed.

“I was trying to see if there was any room in the goat house for the flowers,” she explains as convincingly as she can. “But there’s no room in there, so—”

“Yeah, Noah told me you went into town and got the flowers,” Sid supplies, and Sophia nods quickly.

“Yep, exactly.”

“Well, I’ll ride back up with you and we can get the guys to come unload the flowers. Sound good?”

“Works for me.”

Sophia looks back at the now occupied goat house for a lingering moment before getting in the truck with her dad.

 

“They’re all three here?” Raina whisper yells when she, Sophia, and Mary walk back to the hotel after leaving the tailor’s shop down the street from the hotel. “Where are they?”

“They’re hiding out in the goat house,” Sophia replies quietly. “And no, you can’t see them yet. I’m trying to keep Dad off their trail until tomorrow.”

“Good luck with that,” Mary snorts. “Your dad is going to find out, and he’s going to kill you before the wedding happens.”

“By the time he realizes what’s happened, it’ll be too late. What’s he going to do? Make them leave?”

“Yeah, probably.”

Sophia rolls her eyes.

“Hey, Soph?” Raina asks, sounding a little panicked. “Isn’t that the way to the goat house?” She’s pointing towards the trail that goes behind the hotel and straight to the goat house. Sophia stops breathing when she realizes why Raina sounds so freaked out.

Sid disappears behind some trees just as Sophia sees him. She, Mary, and Raina all three look between each other before simultaneously running after Sid.

By the time the group catches up to him, Sid is trying to rip open the doors of the goat house. She tries to shout out some kind of warning, anything to keep her father from opening the doors, but Sid gives up when the lock to the doors won’t budge. Her relief is short lived, though, when he skips the windows altogether and climbs up the ladder on the side of the house.

“Soph, we have to stop him,” Mary quietly says while clearly not moving from her spot. Sophia makes a face at Mary—who shrugs back in reply—before running towards her dad. Her heart starts pounding when she realizes he is already on top of the roof. How he can still climb so quickly with his bad knees, she will never know.

“Dad!” Sophia calls out as Sid is opening the door on top of the roof. Her voice startles him and instead of stopping him like she had hoped, Sid is suddenly screaming and falling through the roof.

Sophia sprints towards the goat house, Mary and Raina hot on her heels. She opens up one of the window doors to try and check up on him when she sees Geno, Jack, and Shea all standing over her dad.

“Nice entrance,” she hears Geno say to Sid in a teasing tone. She watches on in horror as her dad jolts up into a sitting position on what looks like an air mattress that was still being blown up. He looks bewildered as he darts his wide-eyed gaze between all three men above him. Then he starts laughing. Hysterically, at that. Sophia looks at her two friends uncertainly before daring herself to look back through the window and watch the potentially disastrous scene unfold.

“This better be some kind of weird dream,” he finally says, “because you three better not be here.”

“We’re here, Sid,” Shea says with a charming smile. “Live and in living color.”

Sid blinks and rubs a hand over his face.

“This isn’t happening,” he murmurs to himself as he tries to stand up. Jack and Shea hold out their hands for him, but he swats them away and manages to get up on his own. He wipes the dust off the back of his jeans and rolls his neck around a couple times. Jack smirks.

“Didn’t you have those jeans back in college?” he asks. Sid rolls his eyes before finally cracking a smile.

“They’re good working jeans,” he replies, albeit reluctantly.

“Can’t believe they still fit. Pretty sure your ass is bigger now than it was twenty years ago.” Sid shoves at Jack’s shoulder but is grinning as he does.

“You were a pain in the ass back then, and you’re just as much of a pain in the ass now.” Jack laughs and gives Sid a hug. Sophia’s heart melts as she watches her dad hug Jack back almost immediately. She hates that their friendship fell apart. She thinks Jack would’ve been a pretty good honorary uncle to her.

Maybe even a good father, had he known the truth.

“It’s good seeing you again, Sid,” he mumbles.

“Yeah. You, too, Jack.” Sid pulls back a moment later and looks over to Shea. “You haven’t aged at all.” Shea laughs.

“Oh, I’ve aged, don’t worry,” the sailor says. “I’m not nearly as young as I used to be.”

“You still look great.”

“So do you, Sid.”

Sid and Shea hug next, but it doesn’t last as long as Sid and Jack’s hug did.

“No hug for me?” Geno asks. It’s not lighthearted or funny. Sid visibly stiffens, and the scowl quickly returns to his face. He turns around to face Geno, who doesn’t look ready to joke around, either. Sophia can’t see her dad’s face, but she can imagine the look he’s giving his old lover.

“I thought I said never to come back,” he bites.

“Is free world, Sid,” Geno snaps. “Can go where I want.”

“Why are you even here?” Sid whips his head to Shea and Jack. “Why are all three of you here in the first place?”

“I’m doing a travel piece,” Shea lies to him with such ease.

“I just needed a break from work,” Jack stammers out. It’s clear he’s either a bad liar or he is really that intimidated by Sid. Sophia gets it; her dad can be a scary person when he wants to be. Sid turns to look at Geno.

“And you?” he demands. Geno shrugs.

“Come to say hi,” he says. Sid laughs bitterly.

“Twenty years go by, and I don’t hear from you once.”

“You tell me to never talk to you again. So I listen. Is what you want back then. Make very clear on day I leave.”

“I was heartbroken!”

“You think I’m not heartbroken? Never want to leave you, Sid.”

“But you did. You left and never even tried to come back. Now all of a sudden, you’re back in Kalokairi to say _hi?”_

Sophia should have known this would happen. Her wishful thinking and irrational optimism are about to come back and bite her in the ass. Everyone was right: this was all a big mistake.

“You shouldn’t have come here,” Sid says to him. “I don’t understand why you thought coming here was a good idea, but I wish you would just go. I’ve been doing just fine without any of you here, and I’ll keep doing fine after you’re long gone.”

“The ferry boats are done traveling until Monday,” Jack shyly informs Sid. He shrinks back a little when Sid glares at him. “So, we’re kind of stuck here until then.”

Sid sighs and makes a face.

“Fine. You can stay here until Monday. But stay out of my way and don’t talk to me. None of you. I have a lot on my plate right now, and I really don’t need any of this to distract me.”

Geno looks like he’s about to speak up, but he stops short when he looks behind Sid and notices Sophia watching through the window. She shakes her head and mouths at him to not say anything. Geno purses his lips before looking at Sid again.

“Fine,” he says. “Not bother you again.”

Sophia wishes she could see her dad’s face right now. She wants to know what he’s thinking, and she can usually tell just by the look on his face. Sid nods once and quickly moves towards the double doors of the goat house. Sophia takes that as her cue to leave so that her dad doesn’t see her. She and the girls run around the back side of the goat house to hide from Sid, and Sophia watches as her sniffling father runs up the hill and away from the little building.

“Can you guys go on without me?” she asks her friends. “I’m gonna go talk to them for a minute.”

“What about your dad?” Raina questions. “He looked pretty upset.”

“Uncle Kris and Uncle Flower will talk to him. Any time he’s upset, he always calls them. Doesn’t matter the time of day. He won’t talk to me when he’s mad or upset. It’s always them.”

Raina and Mary look unconvinced but don’t ask any other questions. They walk up the hill when they know that Sid is gone and leave Sophia behind. Sophia walks into the goat house and feels the guilt claw at her heart when she sees Geno, Jack, and Shea sitting around and looking downtrodden over what just took place. Their heads all pop up at the same time when they hear her come in.

Geno sighs.

“I warn you, Sophia,” he says ruefully, “he hates me.”

“He doesn’t _hate_ you,” Sophia immediately argues. “He’s just in shock. I’m sure he’ll be better when the wedding happens.”

“He made it very clear that he doesn’t want to see us at all this weekend,” Jack retorts. “I don’t want to disrespect his wishes, kid. I don’t even know why you invited us here in the first place.”

Sophia’s hands shake as she wrings at them. She needs to tell them her real intentions about being here. But that means she will have to tell her dad as well. The last thing she wants is a fight between everyone, especially with her wedding being tomorrow, but it’s not fair to any of them to not tell the truth.

“There’s another reason I invited you guys here,” she finally says. Her voice trembles, but she swallows and clears her throat before talking again. All three men sit up a little straighter. “I didn’t know about you guys until a couple months ago. I found out on my own by accident, and I—”

Sophia feels like she’s going to be sick.

“Soph?” a voice calls from outside. Sophia spins around to the voice calling her name. She quietly curses.

“Who is that?” Shea asks.

“My fiancé,” she replies before running up to the window to look outside. Sure enough, Noah is walking towards the goat house, looking around for any sign of Sophia.

“You need to go,” Geno gently says. “We talk later. Deal?”

Sophia bites her lip and finally nods.

“I’m sorry about my dad,” she tells the men.

“Don’t worry about it, kid,” Shea assures her. “I’m sure he’ll come around.”

Geno makes a face at that, but Jack looks a little more confident at Shea’s words.

“Go be with your fiancé,” he says. “We can all talk later.”

Sophia smiles sadly at all of them one last time before stepping outside and closing the door behind her. Noah grins when he sees her.

“Hey, baby,” he says happily. Sophia’s returning smile is wobbly. Noah pulls her in for a sweet kiss but pulls away when he realizes she isn’t kissing him back.

“Hey, what’s going on?” he asks worriedly. “You look a little pale.”

Sophia tries to speak, but nothing comes out. She takes a few shaky breaths, but it isn’t helping her calm down. Noah takes her hands in his much larger ones.

“Whatever it is: you can tell me. That’s what being your husband is about.”

“You’re not my husband yet, babe,” Sophia finally says with a ghost of a grin. “Not until tomorrow.”

Noah isn’t smiling at her comment.

“What’s going on?” he repeats. Sophia sniffles and feels tears well up in her eyes.

“Can we go up to the cliff?” she asks quietly. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

 

Sophia explains everything to Noah: from the lack of stories about her other father while growing up to finding the diary to figuring out who they are and sending them invitations to her wedding. Noah just sits and listens, not saying a word the entire time. It’s one of the many things Sophia loves about him; he’s always been a good listener.

When she finally finishes her story, Noah’s face is carefully neutral. He opens and closes his mouth a couple times before stopping altogether. Sophia isn’t sure if that’s a good sign or not.

“Why didn’t you tell me the truth from the beginning?” Noah finally asks. Sophia has to tear her eyes away from Noah’s hurt expression. She gazes at the water and busyness by the main docks. She sees her dad with her uncles, and they’re laughing together. She can tell from this far away that Sid has been crying, but he’s clearly not anymore.

“I got scared,” she tells him. “I know that’s a shitty excuse, and I’m not proud of it. But it’s the truth.” Sophia bites her lip. “I was afraid that you would stop me.”

“You don’t know that.”

“You’re the one who’s been telling me to forget about my other dad.”

“Because I knew how much it upset you to talk about him.”

“I mean, yeah, it sucks to think that I didn’t know him growing up, but I was willing to look past that. And I just kind of accepted that I would never know who my father is. But now—now I have the chance to get to know him.”

“Except you _don’t_ know, Soph. It would be one thing if you knew without a doubt who your dad is, but you don’t. You invited these three complete strangers to our wedding and didn’t even think to talk to me about it.”

“Noah—”

“No, just—”

Noah stands up and takes a deep breath. Sophia didn’t think this would hurt Noah as much as it apparently has. Her stomach is tied up in vicious knots, and her hazel eyes are stinging.

“I’m sorry,” she croaks. “You’re right: I should’ve told you from the beginning.”

“You didn’t go through with this wedding just to find your dad, did you?” Sophia hates the way Noah sounds so unsure and nervous, like she might actually say yes.

“No, of course not,” she says frantically. She scrambles to her feet and takes Noah’s hands into hers. “I love you, Noah. I want to marry you and spend the rest of my life with you. That hasn’t changed at all.”

Sophia cups Noah’s face in her hands and kisses him. Noah pulls her into his body and holds her tightly.

“Are we okay?” Sophia asks into his chest.

“I’m still a little hurt,” Noah admits quietly, “but I’ll be okay. _We_ will be okay. I promise. I love you.”

Sophia will take the small victory for what it is.

“I love you, too.”

She and Noah hold each other in silence while they watch the boats drive and sail by the island.


	2. Sidney

“I still can’t believe it,” Kris cackles as he, Flower, and Sid walk around the docks. “Our boring Sid really was a wild child back in the day.”

Sid shoves at Kris’ shoulder and rolls his eyes.

“I wasn’t _wild,”_ he swears. “Just had a couple weeks where I had a major lapse in judgment. Not the same thing.”

“Pretty close to the same thing,” Flower argues. Sid can never win in an argument with either man individually, so he knows this is a losing fight from the start since they’re both involved and on each other’s side. “How come you never told us about Jack or Shea? You’ve only ever mentioned Geno.”

“Yeah, because that’s definitely a story I want to share. I fall in love with this guy who I think is the one only for him to break my heart and run off without ever talking to me again. And as a way to cope, I hooked up with my roommate at the time and some random world traveler within a week of each other.” Sid sighs as he picks at the hem of his old Queen t-shirt. “My mom was right. I really was a reckless little slut.”

“Don’t talk about yourself like that,” Kris says firmly.

“It’s the truth.”

“You were allowed to be a wild college kid.”

“I had so much more to lose, though. And I ended up losing everything: my family, my scholarship, my old life. Mom and Dad still haven’t tried to call me and it’s been twenty years. I didn’t think I would end up losing them in the end.”

“But you gained Sophia,” Flower reminds him. “She’s changed you for the better, Sid. She’s a great kid with a lot of heart and soul. You got this hotel that has been flourishing since you took over. You care about the people here on the island, and they care about you in return. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”

Sid sometimes feels like he could’ve done more for his daughter while she was growing up. He spent so much time working to support her that he never really got to know her. It would have helped to have his mom help him out, but that was never an option. Hell, the only people from his old life that he still speaks to are Flower and Kris.

And Shea, Jack, and Geno now, too, apparently. Just thinking about the three of them being here in Kalokairi makes his head hurt.

Sid looks out past Flower’s head and speak of the fucking Devil. Two versions of him, at least.

Sid watches as Shea and Jack look to be untying a gorgeous sailboat from the dock. They’re talking and cracking up, and Sid feels this sudden jolt of fondness for them both that he hasn’t felt in years. He hates that he lost connection with them both, especially Jack. They became really close in such a short amount of time, and he thinks that they could’ve been lifelong friends.

Kris and Flower follow Sid’s gaze until their eyes land on the two other men and the boat. Flower rolls his eyes back to Sid, who looks guiltily between his two friends. Kris sighs like he’s put upon before putting a hand on Sid’s shoulder.

“Go talk to them,” he says softly. Flower gives a nod of approval. Sid gives them both grateful hugs before leaving them behind and walking towards Shea and Jack.

Shea sees him first and grins like Sid didn’t just yell at him a couple hours before for coming back to Kalokairi. Jack sees him next and his shoulders draw up almost to his ears. Twenty years and a kid later, and Sid still has a way of getting a major reaction from people, both good and bad. He greets them with a shy wave.

“You’re just in time!” Shea exclaims. “We were just about to take the boat out for a ride! Care to join?”

Sid looks up at the gorgeous boat. He can’t remember the last time he went on any kind of boat for a purpose that wasn’t involved with work or taking care of Sophia to some capacity. There’s still so much to do with the wedding, but a short boat ride wouldn’t really hurt.

The last time he told himself he deserved some fun, he came out of it with a baby. He’s older now, though. A little wiser.

“I need to be back for the rehearsal dinner tonight,” Sid says. “If you don’t mind.”

Shea glances at Jack, who looks a little more relaxed than he did before. Sid gives him a small smile, and Jack gives him one in return.

“If we can all three play nice, then I think a couple laps around the island won’t be too bad.” Shea smirks at Sid. “Just make sure to put sunscreen on this time.”

Sid sighs.

“Never gonna let me live that one down, I guess.”

“Not a chance in Hell, Sid.”

 

“You finally got the big, bad sailboat you always wanted, eh?” Sid says once they’re out of the bay. Shea chuckles and ties off the rope to get the sail out like he wants.

“Finally got her finished up about ten years ago.”

“What happened to the old _Poseidon?”_

“She’s back home in Canada.”

“There was another _Poseidon?”_ Jack chimes in.

“Yeah,” Shea tells him. “She’s a lot smaller and older. With how much I’m traveling, I need something that’s livable.”

Jack nods in understanding before turning to look at Sid, who’s sitting at the nose of the boat. Sid doesn’t move away when Jack sits by him.

“How are you, Sid?” the blond asks. Sid stares out at the beautiful blue water and breathes in deeply. He really can’t complain about his life here on Kalokairi, despite the events that kept him here in the first place. He knows he got lucky with Mama Cassandra giving him the hotel in her will along with the rest of her inheritance. It’s helped with the expansion of the hotel and putting Sophia through school and even helping out the locals in the area during hard times. He hates that he had to raise Sophia by himself because the extra help would have been nice. But he wouldn’t trade any of the choices he’s made for anything.

“I’ve been pretty good,” he answers honestly. “Things were hard for a while there, but I got through it.” He pauses. “What about you? Did you ever end up becoming a stockbroker like your old man wanted?”

Jack laughs.

“No, actually. I’m a banker.”

“Why do I feel like that’s worse than being a stockbroker?”

Jack laughs even harder, and Sid has to laugh along with him. He forgot how easy it was to just sit and laugh with Jack sometimes. Jack always treated him well; better than he ever deserved. Their laughter dies down after a little while, and Shea stands to Sid’s right when he’s satisfied with the sails’ positioning. He sighs happily.

“I’ve really missed this place,” he says, all wistful and nostalgic.

“Me too,” Jack adds. Sid takes a deep breath. He has so many questions that he needs answers to. He knows they didn’t come here at the same time by chance. There’s no such thing as a coincidence.

“Why are you both actually here?” Sid demands a little bit later. It’s been nice just catching up and talking to them, but he needs to know. Jack and Shea glance at each other like they’re trying to figure what to say next. Now Sid is certain something is up.

Shea is the first one to cave.

“We were invited here.”

“By who?”

“I can’t tell you that. I was sworn not to say anything.”

“Was Geno invited too?” Shea nods in reply. Sid should have guessed that much since all three of the men were staying in the same goat house. But now begs the other question.

“Why were you invited?” he asks. Jack gnaws at his bottom lip and breathes deeply. He hesitates before finally answering.

“We got invited to a wedding happening this weekend.”

Sid closes his eyes and runs a hand through his salt and peppered hair.

“Sophia invited you, didn’t she?”

The tense silence from Shea and Jack is enough of an answer. Sid groans and buries his face in his hands. He doesn’t know what to think. He’s in too much shock to respond.

“Do you want us to take you back to the docks?” Shea asks gently. Sid takes a deep, shaky breath and nods. Jack looks at him apologetically, and Sid can’t help but give him a reassuring squeeze on his shoulder.

“I don’t know why my daughter invited you to her wedding,” Sid says—he knows it’s a lie, but he’s not going to tell him that—“but this is me saying that I’m okay with you two coming.”

“What about Geno?” Jack questions. Sid looks away.

“I can’t not invite him,” he eventually says. Shea has already begun turning the sails to get them back to the docks. Sid’s chest aches like an old bruise, and it only spreads the closer he gets back to the impending chaos that awaits.

 

Geno is standing on the docks when Sid, Shea, and Jack return. Sid hates the way his stomach still flutters like it did twenty years ago whenever he sees Geno. Shea helps him off the sailboat, and as soon as his feet touch the wooden dock, Geno is walking towards him.

Sid quietly swears to himself as his cheeks turn pink. How Geno can still get a reaction like this out of him after so many years, he hasn’t a clue.

Geno’s frowning, but he doesn’t seem angry. More confused.

“Need to talk,” he says directly at Sid.

“I know that my daughter invited you to her wedding,” Sid says before Geno can say anything further. “I wish she would’ve told me, but there’s nothing I can do to stop you from going since it’s what _she_ wants. It’s her wedding, not mine.”

“How old is she, Sid?”

Sid pauses. That is the last question he expected to be asked. And then it hits him why Geno’s asking. His heart races and all the color drains from his skin. He swallows and looks behind him to find Shea and Jack looking at Sid. Everyone is waiting for an answer. Sid awkwardly clears his throat.

“Nineteen,” he finally says. “Her birthday was back in April.”

Geno bites his lip and starts breathing heavily through his nose. Sid can hear someone hitch their breath and another one curse quietly from behind him.

“Why you never tell me?” Geno demands. “Never call. Never write. Nothing. Now I have to find out twenty years later I have daughter?”

“Sophia’s actually Geno’s daughter?” Jack exclaims. Sid turns his head back to look at Jack, whose eyes are practically bugging out of his own head. Sid knows he can’t lie to any of them at this point. He wants to, though. He wants to just say yes, Geno is definitely Sophia’s other father. But the truth is—

“I don’t know.”

Sid is met with silence, as was expected. He decides to take it to his advantage and keep talking.

“I slept with all three of you. Within a month of each other. I’m not exactly proud about what I did, but it happened. I didn’t know I was pregnant with Sophia until you were all already long gone. I’m sorry I never said anything until now, but that’s all I’m sorry for. I worked my ass off to raise her on my own after I got cut off by my parents. It was reckless to do what I did with all of you, and I paid the price for my shitty choices. But I don’t regret it.”

Sid looks Geno square in the eye. He can’t flinch away and hide this time. He can’t run and hide and throw a fit anymore.

“I don’t regret any of it.”

Geno’s brown eyes soften their hardened gaze. Sid doesn’t wish that he would’ve told Geno, Jack, or Shea about Sophia so soon after he found out he was pregnant with her. He did just fine raising his little girl. Having Mama Cassandra there during the first part of Sophia’s life helped as well. She was the grandmother Sophia never had. Sid didn’t need a husband to help him raise his daughter.

Sometimes, though, he wonders how differently things would have gone had one of them stayed and helped him raise Sophia. Would he have stayed on the island? Who would have taken over the hotel after Mama Cassandra’s passing? How different of a person would Sophia be? So many unanswered questions that Sid doesn’t really want to know the answers to. What’s done is done.

He doesn’t regret the choices he’s made.

“Dad!”

Sid whips his head to his right to see Sofia running down the docks with Noah in tow. She looks upset and a little distressed, and Sid swears he can hear Noah begging Sophia to stop running and _think about what you’re doing._

“What’s wrong?” Sid asks. “Are you okay?”

“I need to tell you something,” she says breathlessly when she stops in front of him. “I invited them. All three of them. I know it was dumb, but I just--”

“I know.”

“What?”

“I know you invited all three of my exes to your wedding. What I want to know is how in the hell you figured out who they were and why you did it in the first place.”

Sophia swallows and stands up a little straighter. She’s not much shorter than Sid, but she still has to tilt her chin up a little to look up at him.

“You want to know why I did what I did?” she asks. “Here’s why. For nineteen years, I only had you. I know your family cut you off, and I accepted that. I hate it because you deserve so much better, but I know I can’t control what they decide.” She laughs humorlessly. “The part that’s really bothered me since I can remember is that I never knew who my other father was.”

“Soph—”

“No. I’m done beating around the bush about this. I deserved to know the truth. I didn’t even try to go looking for answers. They came to me. I found your journal when I was looking for old pictures of you and me from when I was a baby. The one you kept from the year you were pregnant with me.”

“You found it?”

Sid feels like he’s going to be sick. He can’t believe she found it. He thought he had hidden it so well.

“Yeah. And I read all of it. Why couldn’t you just tell me the truth? You know I wouldn’t have judged you. At least I would’ve had some answers instead of having to explain to all of my friends that I only have one parent and never knew anything about the other.”

“I had my reasons for doing what I did.”

“Someone not knowing who their father is, is just crap!” Sophia shouts. Her voice is cracking and Sid can tell she’s on the verge of tears. “I had a right to know, and I wish I would’ve found out from you first instead of having to find out through a journal!”

“I wanted to wait until you were older! You wouldn’t have understood!”

“That doesn’t matter! You could’ve made something up until I was finally old enough to know what actually happened! I love you, Dad, but I really hate that you felt that I, of all the people in the world, would have judged you so harshly. Me. Your own _daughter.”_

Tears are streaming down Sophia’s beautiful face now, and Sid feels even worse than he did before. He just wants to comfort his daughter, explain to her that she has every right to be upset with him, that he’s sorry for what he put her through growing up. But when he steps towards her, she flinches away. It breaks Sid’s heart.

“Soph—”

“I can’t deal with this right now.”

Sid calls out for Sophia as she whirls around and runs off. Noah looks apologetically at Sid before following his fiance. Sid’s shoulders slump forward as he watches the young couple run away.

“Let them go, Sid,” Geno says when Sid tries to take a step forward. Sid looks at him.

“She needs me,” he insists.

“She need Noah. _You_ need rest.”

“I have to get all this wedding planning done. The ceremony is tomorrow, and the rehearsal is tonight, and—”

“Leave that to friends, to us. We handle things.”

Sid wants to argue and tell Geno that he can’t just swoop in like this. He’s about to say just that when Jack clears his throat to get Sid’s attention.

“I had to help with a lot of the planning for my brother’s wedding a few years ago,” he announces to the group. “I’m sure we can all figure out where things are meant to go and what all needs to be done.”

“We can ask other people to help us out, too,” Shea adds. “We have all the time in the world to get everything done. Just go relax.”

“Sid.” Sid slowly turns back to Geno once more. Geno’s eyes are pleading. “Take break.” Sid wants to try and argue some more, but Geno’s pleas are enough to deter him. Instead, he just deflates and sighs.

“Fine. I’ll get some rest.”

“I’m come with you.”

Sid makes a face.

“I can make it back to the hotel on my own.”

“I know.” Geno steps closer until he is right in Sid’s personal space. “But we need to talk. Alone.” Sid can see Shea and Jack watching on with almost knowing looks from his peripheral. He really hates how weak he still is for Geno, even after all this time. He sighs.

“It’s a long walk, so you better be able to keep up.”

“I’m still pro athlete, Sid,” Geno scoffs. “Can run circles around you.”

Sid remembers when Geno told him that very same thing so many years ago. It brought a smile to his face then, and it still does now.

“We’ll see about that.”

 

Geno walks with Sid back to the hotel. They haven’t spoken since they were down by the docks, but it’s not awkward like Sid had feared. The only thing that’s been bothering Sid has been the fact that Geno has been trying to keep his distance. The steps are narrow, though, so he can only be so far away.

Sid, out of some old habit from far too long ago, moves in a little closer until he and Geno are occasionally bumping shoulders. Geno doesn’t move away, and Sid is thankful. Just this closeness is enough to calm his nerves.

Geno has always had that effect on him. It should be unnerving that he still does, but Sid can’t be too upset about it. No one’s ever been able to make him feel safe and secure like Geno did.

When they finally make it to the room, Sid unlocks the door with his key and lets himself inside. He keeps the door open so Geno can come in as well. Geno whistles lowly while he looks around.

“Very nice,” he says. “Hotel come long way in twenty years.”

“Yeah, it has,” Sid agrees. “It’s been a lot of hard work, but it’s nice seeing the hotel really thrive. I hate that Mama Cassandra isn’t around to see it.”

“Always know it do well. Love this place.”

“Then why didn’t you ever come back?”

Sid knows it’s kind of blunt and a little rude, but he’s never been a very eloquent person when it comes to words. Geno makes a face like he’s thinking as he keeps looking around the cozy bedroom.

“Hurt too much to come back,” he finally says as he picks up a framed photo of Sid and Sophia from Sophia’s last spring formal from her old school. He puts it back and picks up the picture frame next to it. Geno’s gaze lingers on the only photo taken of Sid from before he gave birth to Sophia. Mama Cassandra had insisted on one Polaroid photo of him holding his bump just a few short weeks before he gave birth.

“I don’t understand,” Sid says thickly. Geno’s smile is wistful, maybe even a little sad.

“When I think of Kalokairi, I think of you. Wonder what you do, where you are.” He bites his lip. “Wonder if you meet someone. Someone better.” Sid’s breath hitches. “You so smart and kind. Funny. Love children. Beautiful. I’m just _know_ you find someone.”

“And you didn’t?”

Geno puts the frame back in its spot and walks outside onto the balcony. Sid follows him outside and stands next to him, leaning against the railing. The sun is getting lower, and the breeze coming off the water is cool and crisp. Sid watches as Geno seems to be thinking about what he’s going to say next. He sneaks a glance at Geno’s long, calloused fingers. His stomach swoops when he doesn’t see a ring.

“Think I’m find someone once,” Geno finally says. “We meet in Russia, date, marry. But I’m gone so much. Hockey in North America is very demanding. Schedule make things hard. She hate Pittsburgh. Having kids not easy. We never get that far when we divorce.”

Geno fiddles his fingers and takes a deep intake of breath before exhaling loudly. Sid wants to reach out for him and comfort him somehow.

“Do you miss her?” he asks quietly. Geno smiles small.

“Sometimes. Miss having someone to come home to, but is all I miss about her. Never love her as much as I think.”

Sid raises a brow at Geno.

“What do you mean?” Geno’s smile grows a little more when he looks at Sid. Sid’s heart flutters like it used to always do when Geno would look at him like that. Geno steps closer to Sid until they’re toe to toe with each other. Geno has gotten taller, and he’s definitely aged a lot in twenty years. But there’s still that youthful glint to his eyes that gives Sid butterflies.

“Leave my heart in Kalokairi. Never get it back. Never want it back.”

“Geno—”

Just as Geno starts to lean in, a knock is heard at the door.

Geno sighs defeatedly before stepping back and away from Sid. Sid wants to chase after his touch, but he knows this could be someone important. He rubs a hand over his face and walks to the front door to open it. Kris and Flower are standing on the other side with curious looks.

“What do you want?” Sid snaps. Flower blinks.

“We were just checking on you,” Kris answers calmly. “Shea said that you came back to the hotel to get some rest. You doing okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good.”

“Do you need us to stay with you?” Flower asks. “Jack took over wedding planning, and he’s surprisingly really good at it. He’s got a good eye for interior designing.”

Sid knows this. Jack was always good at drawing and making things look nice, regardless of their disastrous state.

“Think is time for me to go,” Geno says, suddenly a lot closer than before. Sid whips around to see Geno standing directly behind him. Sid doesn’t want Geno to go. There’s so much he wants to say but not in front of anyone else. Instead, he clears his throat and gestures for Flower and Kris to move out of the way. Geno nods once in thanks and steps last them into the hallway. He hesitates before turning back around to look at Sid. He’s got a sweet smile to his face when he takes Sid’s hand into his own. His fingers are rough from years of playing hockey and vigorously working out, but they still send sparks through Sid’s body.

Geno brings Sid’s hand up to his mouth and kisses his knuckles. Sid’s next breath is sharp, and his head is getting a little fuzzy.

“We talk more later,” Geno whispers. “Promise.”

Sid swallows the lump in his throat and nods quickly. His hand feels cold when Geno lets go and starts walking away from his room. He softly closes the door and turns around to see Flower and Kris’ knowing smirks.

“You still love him,” Flower sing-songs. Sid rolls his eyes but doesn’t reply.

“I don’t think I could ever stop loving him.”

“Sid!” a voice shouts from outside the hotel. Sid frowns and walks over to the balcony once more to see who’s calling his name. Sure enough, Geno is in the middle of the courtyard looking up at Sid with a wide grin on his face. Sid has a sense of deja vu when he sees that charming smile. He remembers the night Geno dropped him back off at the hotel at three in the morning after that first night they had together. He wishes he could run down and kiss the life out of Geno, but he restrains himself.

Geno blows Sid a kiss. It’s a simple gesture, but it makes Sid’s skin tingle. It’s almost like he knows exactly what Sid is wishing for at this very moment. Sid blushes and, in a moment of bravery, blows a kiss right back. Geno mimes like he’s catching it and places it against his heart. Sid feels elated as he watches Geno finally walk away.

Maybe he and Geno can make this work again? It’s dumb to hope, but he still does. He ignores Flower and Kris’ questions and chirps as he announces that he’s going to take a shower before the wedding rehearsal later that evening.

 

Sid shouldn’t be surprised by the way Sophia doesn’t really talk to him at the wedding rehearsal except a few words here and there. Sophia is just like her father in the sense that she is very good at keeping a straight face and not showing any emotions if she doesn’t want to. This is one of those times.

“Is she still angry with me?” Sid asks Noah when they’re standing in front of the altar and waiting for the girls to work on their cues to walk down the aisle to.

“Honestly, I can’t really tell,” Noah confesses. “She’s freakishly good at staying quiet when she wants to. I’m still not really used to it. Got any hints as to deal with that?”

Sid laughs.

“Kid, all I can tell you is to stay out of her way and let her come to you.”

“You should probably take your own advice, then.” Sid’s easy smile fades a little. “She’ll come talk to you when she’s ready.”

The next morning, Sophia still hasn’t come by to talk to Sid. No calls or texts, either. Raina and Mary came by earlier to tell him that she needed a break from everyone’s prying eyes while she gets ready for her wedding. Sid’s a little hurt, but he’ll manage. He thinks.

He needs a drink.

Sid knows that the only reason he started going gray before his thirties is because of Sophia. That kid is both the light of his life and the bane of his existence. He thought her being an adult now would help slow down the process, but no. If anything, his hair is going to be solid white before this weekend is over. He’ll probably get a few more wrinkles around his face while he’s at it. She seems to have always had that effect on him since the day she was born.

He groans rests his head against the table in front of him.

“Why the hell am I drinking at eleven o’clock in the morning?” he complains. It’s been a long time since he’s been able to day drink or even really drink at all. But after how the past twenty-four hours have gone, he deserves a beer or two. Or twelve.

“Because you fucking deserve it,” Kris answers as he takes a sip from his own beer. The three of them are sitting on the balcony of Sid’s bedroom, overlooking Kalokairi and the Sea of Crete.

“I still have to get all this stuff finished before the ceremony,” Sid weakly protests as he tries to stand up.

“Just drink and relax, Sid,” Flower advises his friend as he pulls him back down to sit. “Your exes have everything under control.” Sid never thought he would hear _anyone_ tell him that in a million years. “After this weekend, you won’t have to worry about any wedding stuff for at least another twenty years. You and Soph are going to work things out. Besides, it’s not like she’s leaving Kalokairi any time soon except for when she and Noah go on their honeymoon.”

Sid still has his own opinions about Sophia staying here, but he doesn’t feel like getting into that right now.

As if on cue, someone knocks at the front door to his room. He all but sprints to the door to see who it is. He needs a distraction from his thoughts before this wedding happens. He blinks when he opens the door and sees Sophia standing on the other side. She looks like she didn’t get any sleep the night before, and her hair is a mess.

“Soph?” he says. “I thought you were getting ready?” Sophia shyly shifts her weight between her feet and hangs her head.

“Can you help me get ready?” she mumbles. “Raina tried to work with my hair, but you were always the best at doing that really cool crown braid thing, and that’s how I want my hair. And I—” Sophia breathes shakily. “I really want you there to help me. Like you promised.”

Sid remembers when Sophia was twelve years old and begging Sid to be the one to help her get ready on the day she gets married. It’s hard to believe that seven years later, Sid would be doing just that.

“You still want to help me, right?” his daughter asks him quietly. His eyes sting as he nods.

“Yeah, I—of course I do. Just let me tell your uncles and get some shoes on, ok?”

“Okay.”

 

Brushing Sophia’s hair out when it’s dry has always been a bit of a nightmare because of how thick and curly it is, so Sid gets her to wet her hair again so he can get everything right. They laugh and goof off like they always do, and it feels like the fight yesterday never even happened.

“I’m going back to Boston in the fall,” Sophia blurts out as Sid braids her hair. Sid has to stop for a moment and just stare at Sophia in the mirror. She’s doing her own makeup, and Sid is relieved. He can do braids and fancy hairdos all day long, but he can barely tell the difference between mascara and eyeliner.

“You’re what?” he asks. Sophia stops doing her eye makeup to look up at Sid.

“I know I said that I would stay on the island with you and do classes online. But I think it would be better for me and Noah if I go back to the States with him. At least until I’m done with school. We talked about it last night, and we still want to be here for the summer. But we can’t wait to go back to Boston. Is that going to be okay with you?”

Sid ponders over what Sophia is saying. She had been so determined to stay here with Sid in Kalokairi, and he had gotten used to it. To hear her say that she’s changed her mind is both great and sad simultaneously. He starts back up on braiding her hair.

“You know I’ve always wanted you to be able to go to college and be successful in whatever you do,” he starts off saying. “You can’t be a sports analyst or stats expert here on Kalokairi. You can read all the books and take all the classes. But you can’t gain the experience you need to be the best you can be in your field. I’ve never been against you staying in Boston. I know you worry about me, but I can take care of myself.”

“So Geno isn’t staying?”

Sid raises his eyebrows at her.

“Is there something you know that I don’t?” Sophia grins sheepishly.

“I might have gone to talk to Geno last night after the rehearsal dinner.” Sid does his best to hide the shock from his face.

“What all did you two talk about?”

“The hotel, my schooling, Noah. Mostly you, though. He kept asking if you were seeing someone and if you had someone helping you run the hotel.”

“What did you tell him?”

“The truth. You should be able to have someone else to be here for you. Uncle Kris and Uncle Flower can only stay for so long, and there’s really no one else to help you out.”

“I can hire someone.”

“Last time you did that, it almost ended with us losing everything. If I can’t be here to help you, then you should at least have someone else you trust to be here.”

“And you think that person should be Geno?”

“I don’t think; I _know.”_

“Last I checked, he’s still playing hockey.”

Sophia smirks.

“Not for long,” she says all sing-songly. Sid wants to ask what she means, but he needs to finish her hair so they can get her dress and shoes on and so that he can get ready himself. They can talk about that later. They have the rest of the summer to talk everything out before Sophia returns to Boston.

He thinks of Geno staying with him in Kalokairi to help him run the hotel, and his whole body goes warm with happiness at the thought.

 

The wedding goes off without a hitch. Sid walks Sophia down the aisle and tries not to cry, but he finally breaks a little when he hears his daughter’s wedding vows to Noah.

“I promise to love you with my entire heart,” she says, her voice all wobbly but smiling so wide it must hurt her cheeks. “You’re my soulmate and my best friend, and I could never love someone the way I love you. It’s been fun being with you so far, and I know it’ll only get better. We’ll have hard times, but I vow to always fight for you and for what we have. You’re mine and I’m yours. Forever. I love you, Noah Hanifin, and I’m ready for this adventure we’re about to embark on.”

Sid quickly wipes the tears away from his cheeks and looks out at the crowd. Geno is staring at him from the back pew of the little church, tears evident in his own eyes and a smile even wider than Sophia’s. Sid feels like he and Geno are on the brink of something great. It’s the same feeling Sid had deep in his bones before Geno had run off to America to play in the NHL.

Sid has made up his mind on what he’s going to do next.

 

Sid is grinning from where he’s leaning against the wall of the hotel as he watches Sophia and Noah have their first dance as husband and wife in the middle of the common area. He still can’t believe that his little girl is married now. It feels like just yesterday he was driving his boat to the mainland to take her to school every morning. He’s so proud of the woman she’s become, and he knows she’s only going to grow even more as time goes on.

“She look beautiful, Sid.”

Sid looks to his left to see Geno standing next to him with a lazy smile on his face. He’s never lost his looks or his charm, and Sid has missed it. He’s missed everything about Geno from his easy humor to his kindness and his ambitiousness. His good looks don’t hurt, either. There’s a couple of new scars around his face and his hands—there’s probably many more underneath his suit from years of playing such a rough sport like hockey—but he’s still just as handsome as ever.

“She really does,” Sid remarks as he watches Noah dip a cackling Sophia. “Still can’t believe she’s married now.”

“Time flies.”

“Yeah.” Sid sighs. “Yeah it does. I kind of wish it would slow down a little.”

“It can slow down tonight.”

Sid flicks his gaze back to Geno.

“How so?” he asks. He thinks he knows the answer, but he doesn’t want to assume. Geno just grins and leans in close to Sid’s face.

“Like this.”

Before Sid can question what Geno is about to do, he feels a pair of chapped but soft lips on his own. It gives him the same floaty feeling all over that it did twenty years ago, and it feels so good to have this again. He hasn’t been kissed since that fateful summer, thinking he didn’t deserve love after letting it slip away so easily.

Geno pulls away enough to look Sid in the eyes and grin down at him. Sid could wake up to that smile every day for the rest of his life and never tire of it.

“I heard you and my daughter were scheming behind my back last night,” he teases. “Something about you staying in Kalokairi to help me with the hotel when she goes back to Boston?”

“Is all she say?” Geno says, his tone just as light. His smirk softens into a tiny smile. “Think I’m retire this year.” Sid’s eyes widen.

”What?” he exclaims. “But why?”

”Twenty years in NHL is long time,” Geno explains. “Have couple of bad injuries. Old man now, Sid. I get four cups in Pittsburgh. Think I deserve to hang up skates.”

Sid knows it probably wasn’t an easy decision for Geno to make, but he’s glad Geno is thinking about his health and his future.

“So you’re gonna retire on some tiny island in Greece to help me renovate this hotel?” Sid asks as he gestures to the buildings surrounding the circular commons. Geno laces his fingers with Sid’s own and gently squeezes his palm.

“If you want,” he says. It’s an offer, a hopeful question. Sid can turn him down at any time, and Geno knows that. Sid rises up on his toes and kisses Geno.

“How’s that for an answer?”

Geno grins widely and captures Sid’s lips in a much deeper kiss than either one of them has allowed to happen. It’s so familiar and yet so new at the same time. This is a kiss of promise, a second chance they never thought they would get to have.

“So you two have made up, I guess?”

Sid quickly pulls away and turns to see Shea, Jack, Flower, and Kris watching them with similar grins painted on all of their faces. Sid’s sure his cheeks are bright red, but he can’t bring himself to care. This is the happiest he has been in a very long time, and he’s not going to let anyone spoil that for him.

“You could say that,” he says in reply. Geno squeezes his hand again and gently tugs him closer to his body.

“Well,” Kris shouts over the suddenly loud music, “if you two are done making out like a couple of teenagers, there’s a party going on that everyone wants you two to join in on!”

Sid _hates_ dancing in front of people, but he still laughs as Geno drags him out onto the makeshift dance floor. Everyone is belting out the words to the music playing over the speakers, and it’s easy to fall in line with everyone else in the crowd. He dances with Geno and Sophia the most, but he also has some fun dancing with Shea and Jack.

“Thank you both for coming,” he tells them when he’s done dancing with them. “And thank you for helping with finishing the wedding.”

“Hey, we’d do anything for our daughter,” Shea assures Sid. Sid raises an eyebrow. Shea laughs at Sid’s expression. “Jack, Geno, and I decided last night that we don’t really need a DNA test to see which one of us is biologically Sophia’s dad. We can just split that title between the three of us.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive,” Jack answers. “There’s no reason why we can’t or shouldn’t. It just means we all get to be grandparents in the end.”

Sid can’t even begin to think about grandchildren right now. His daughter just got married a few hours ago.

“Grandkids can come when she’s graduated college,” Sid says firmly. “No exceptions.”

Shea and Jack laugh, and Sid has to laugh along with them. A long arm wraps itself around Sid’s torso and spins him around until he’s chest to chest with a smirking Geno.

“What you three laugh about?” he demands.

“Sophia having kids,” Jack cackles. Geno’s eyes widen as he looks at Sid.

“She pregnant?” he shrieks.

“She better not be!” Sid exclaims back. Geno barks a laugh before wrapping his other arm around Sid and holding him close for another dance. Sid can see Sophia dancing with her bridesmaids while watching him from the corner of his eye. She gives him a small nod of approval with a matching grin on her face. Sid turns his attention back to Geno and feels his heart beat happily at the taller man smiling dreamily down at him. Sid cups the back of Geno’s neck and pulls him down for a kiss, and Geno gladly goes where Sid wants him to.

There’s still so much they need to talk about—Geno’s impending retirement, the hotel, where they will officially stand when Geno permanently moves to Kalokairi—but for now, they can have this night to let loose and bask in the love they have for Sophia and for each other.

That’s enough to satisfy them for now.


End file.
